Pandigital's Novel has a 7-inch color touch-screen LCD display and connects to the Internet through Wi-Fi. The Novel, which runs on Google's Android platform, can also play video and other multimedia content.

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Although the Novel has more iPad-like functions than an e-reader, such as the ability to run Android apps, Finnegan stressed he was not marketing it as a full tablet or netbook computer. But the company believes it can tap a larger mass market than its e-reader competitors.

Using the powerful and flexible combination of the Android operating system and an ARM 11 Mobile processor, this Pandigital Novel has a built-in, full web browser so users can quickly go online to update social media sites and check out recent news, events and weather.

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model number PRD07T10WWH7) Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price of $199.99 and is backed by a one year limited warranty. It will be available at several national retailers beginning in June.

Analysts said Pandigital could succeed in an increasingly crowded e-reader market because the 12-year-old firm has the advantage of an established distribution network for its digital photo frames, with 37,000 outlets in North America - including Kohl's, Macy's, Costco and Bed, Bath & Beyond - that don't just specialize in electronics.

I wonder how they will market it in these locations-kiosks? Demo stands? Hope we can play with them!

Wasn't BB&B something of a launchpad for Jetbook?
If you want to reach the non-techie crowd, it's not a bad place to start.

The real interesting thing about it (after the app-supporting update) is the possibility of getting Kindle for Android on it. That would mean double-DRM commercial ebooks; B&N ePub and Amazon Mobi. That alone makes it (and the horde of Android tablets headed our way) interesting.

It also brings up a thought: how soon til we see a standalone B&N app for Android?

6 hours battery life is... suboptimal... but acceptable. Barely... It works out to an evening's worth of reading. My netbook runs about 7 hours and I rarely run out of power. The battery had better be user replaceable, though, cause that thing is going to run through a lot of recharge cycles in a year.

Nonetheless, the features (if they work) and the price are very interesting.

Wasn't BB&B something of a launchpad for Jetbook?
If you want to reach the non-techie crowd, it's not a bad place to start.

The real interesting thing about it (after the app-supporting update) is the possibility of getting Kindle for Android on it. That would mean double-DRM commercial ebooks; B&N ePub and Amazon Mobi. That alone makes it (and the horde of Android tablets headed our way) interesting.

It also brings up a thought: how soon til we see a standalone B&N app for Android?

6 hours battery life is... suboptimal... but acceptable. Barely... It works out to an evening's worth of reading. My netbook runs about 7 hours and I rarely run out of power. The battery had better be user replaceable, though, cause that thing is going to run through a lot of recharge cycles in a year.

Nonetheless, the features (if they work) and the price are very interesting.

Don't forget Kobo/Shortcovers for additional content. Also, the Android version of Fictionwise eReader is quite nice with a built-in dictionary and good annotation capabilities.

Wasn't BB&B something of a launchpad for Jetbook?
If you want to reach the non-techie crowd, it's not a bad place to start.

The real interesting thing about it (after the app-supporting update) is the possibility of getting Kindle for Android on it. That would mean double-DRM commercial ebooks; B&N ePub and Amazon Mobi. That alone makes it (and the horde of Android tablets headed our way) interesting.

It also brings up a thought: how soon til we see a standalone B&N app for Android?

6 hours battery life is... suboptimal... but acceptable. Barely... It works out to an evening's worth of reading. My netbook runs about 7 hours and I rarely run out of power. The battery had better be user replaceable, though, cause that thing is going to run through a lot of recharge cycles in a year.

Nonetheless, the features (if they work) and the price are very interesting.

I agree I like the fact that you will pretty much be able to buy from most online e-books stores but the battery life is meh. The price is right so I might bite. I was hoping for an e-reader with an e-ink screen that could read from all e-books stores but now with people copying the ipad that idea is most likely a dead duck.